I Think I'm Ready To Forgive Toys R Us

So I don't think I posted about here, or maybe I did, but either early last year or the year before, I made several orders to Toys R Us. I ordered some LittleMissMatched dolls and clothes from the site. The toy line had been discontinued, and I'd learned the clothing would fit a ball-joint doll I'd just purchased, so I needed to hunt around the buy the clothing. Toys R Us had a large amount of the clothing packs that other sites didn't, and I decided to splurge to get them all. When my order came I saw that I got two of one item. Thinking I'd just simply ordered 2 of one item by mistake, I ordered the item again. I got my package and it was again the outfit I'd already had 2 of. So, fed up, I went to Ebay, I felt the price of the outfit was to small to contact Toys R Us and try to get it exchanged. I found the right outfit on Ebay for cheaper than it was on Toys R Us, so I ordered it. When I did some research into the seller, however, I learned it was the Ebay account or Toys R Us. So I nervously waited to get my package, and when I got it, I wasn't surprised what I found inside. I now had 4 of the same outfit. Well I was irritated by then, and called up the customer service department of Toys R Us, and let's just say I hope the woman, who helped me that day, got to go home and sit down to her favorite dinner and have it taste bland and salty and not how she remembered it at all.

She was so utterly rude to me and on the sly tried to call me stupid. I hung up on her when I learned we weren't getting anywhere when I tried to explain to her that the picture for the item was right but the text and item number were wrong. She kept cutting me off and trying to read the description to me like I was a child. I was polite and waited for her to finish, and when I tried to explain myself to her again she again tried to, on the sly, call me stupid. I got tired of being explained to how I was stupid, so I hung up on her. I usually don't hang up on people, because I don't like people hanging up on me, but she so deserved it. So there I was, left with 4 of the same outfit, and still missing the one I needed. I think I finally got the right outfit from Ebay and I made sure to ask the seller what it looked like before I purchased. I also gave two of the outfits to my mom and sister, and the extra one I kept was used as separates for dolls. So it all turned out in the end, but you can imagine the experience left me with a nasty taste in my mouth when it came to Toys R Us.

So the following year when they had an exclusive 17 Monster High doll, I was not happy. Why? Because I wanted her so badly. I had all the other 17 inch girls, so I had to have this one. So I sucked it up and ordered her. The order turned out fine. I was relieved and decided that was the only time I would order from them, but then...Christmas came...they had good sales on things I wanted...I made several orders within one month to them. Each order came to me perfectly, but I'll be honest, when the box came to my door I was always nervous to open it. I always expected it to be wrong, but thankfully they were fine. I was shocked by that, especially during the chaos of Christmas shopping time. Well after that I decided, no more. I got lucky, but let me not push my luck. I was fine with that choice, until I was told about another good sale on some items I wanted this past month. Ughhhh!!! I had to order them.

I was fine when I ordered, because of the recent success I'd had with them. I didn't feel nervous ordering at all. I waited for the box to get here, and when it did, that old forgotten fear came back. What if they had messed up my order again. Slowly I opened the package and was happy to see it was all perfect. Then this past week, another good freaking sale caused me to order again. I got the package today, and the nervous feeling was back, but it wasn't as strong as it was the previous times. I think I had more belief in Toys R Us now. Still, I slowly opened the package preparing myself, but in the end I had nothing to fear. The items were all there and I was a happy camper. The boxes were even in good condition, if I wanted to keep them in their boxes I'd be happy about that.

The only complaint I've had recently about them is one of my earlier orders this month had a bad box that was scratch up, a huge sticker residue that I could get off with peanut butter, and black mushy stuff on the box and inside that box that I worry was rodent droppings. I cleaned the box up as best I could, it's not perfect, but I plan to remove the item, so I am ok with a less than perfect box, but I feel more care should have been taken with the box and what the hell was that black mushy stuff? Ugh. But I got my stuff, and that's the important thing. So I think it's time to forgive and move on.

Everyone has a one off, and it was honestly the webmaster's fault, and not Toys R Us, for my order being wrong the first time I ordered. I guess they "technically" got the order right because they sent me the item that the sku number was listed as, but human error caused me to get the wrong package. I'm sure there are more items like that on their website, but their website is huge, so that's also to be expected. So I hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the butt later on, but I will no longer say I won't order from the site. My trust has been rebuilt, and I feel I can shop with confidence from them. I hope that since my last customer service experience that they've worked on that some, because that lady was a royal pain in the ass. But who knows, maybe she had a bad day that day, it was near the end of the day too when I called, and she might have just been exhausted. I hope she's being nicer to stressed out customers and has stopped trying to hint that they may just be stupid. That part is what shocked and insulted me the most, especially when I knew what I was talking about and she couldn't catch on to what I was saying because she was so focused on proving me wrong. But, meh, live and let live.

And that's about all I wanted to post about today guys and gals. I guess when I realized I still had that fear of opening a package from this company, I had a mental talk to myself and realized I needed to let it go and move on. I kept saying I wouldn't buy from them any more and yet I did, so I guess I needed to talk it out and put it out into the universe that I forgive and I ready and willing to shop with them. Especially if they have more awesome sales like they have been having. 😀 And on that note, I hope all of you are having a wonderful day, afternoon, or evening. I am hoping to start popping back in here more often soon, but I am still working out what I want to do with this blog and how I want to incorporate it into other stuff I am trying to do. Stay tuned to see how that goes. Until next time guys, I hope you all have a magical, wonderful, splendiferous day. Bye guys! 😁

Why I Hate @ToysRUs – Warning, Long Rant Ahead

Image From Free Digital Photos

So I have had an interesting two weeks when it comes to trying to order one clearance item from Toys R Us. So I decided to order some clothing for Midori. I was curious about Little Missmatched Doll clothing because I heard some of the clothing fit. FYI, the clothing fits Liv dolls, a bit loose, but it fits. Anyway, I made a nice big order of some things I wanted and figured I should go for the free shipping. Got it and waited for my package. Package came, I opened it, and was bummed to see I got two Little Missmatched Doll Fashion Forward clothing packs and no Little Missmatched Doll Casual Comfort pack. Well I figured it was human error, and wasn't going to go through the hassel for such a cheap item. I decided to just order it again. I mean my order was big so it would be easy to make a mistake, right? Hummm...

So today my order came in, and guess what? It was the Little Missmatched Doll Fashion Forward clothing pack. Ok, now this time it wasn't funny any more. I was irritated by now. I was figuring out how to go to the store to return the two I got in the free shipping order, so I wouldn't be out of the shipping price, and hit Ebay in hopes of finding it there for a decent price. I found it for the same price as Toys R Us, for cheaper shipping. Seller had 98% feedback, so I decided to go for it. Then I got a message from Paypal saying my order to Toys R Us went through. Umm...what? I went a looked, ughhhhhhh!!! The seller, why didn't it hit me, is KB Toys!!! Toys R Us bought them out!!! So now I began to wonder if I would get the same outfit again. This bothered me. A stupid clearance item has now cost me some serious money and it is all due to Toys R Us and their website error. So I decided to call them, just to make sure I get the Casual Comfort outfit and not the Fashion Forward one again. As pretty as Fashion Forward is, I really didn't need a 4^th one. So I called, and I kid you not, the woman who took my call almost landed me in the hospital.

So the woman who picked up seemed nice enough, she said hello at least. I explained to her what happened with my order, so she looked it up and explained what it said on the website, and in longgggg detail. She literally read it out loud to me. I hate being read to. Anyway, when she was done I explained that the description she read was for the item I got, but it was not the item I ordered. She said that I ordered the Casual Comfort outfit. I said yes. She said then that I got what I ordered. I explained to her that the website is wrong and I did not in-fact get what I ordered. She proceed to get heated with me saying that I did get what I ordered. I kept explaining to her that I ordered a different item but I kept getting the wrong item. She then proceeded to tell me that no matter what I think, I got the item I ordered. She said what I was saying would be like me going to the store, looking at the shelf and seeing something that is clearly labeled it was blue, bought the item, went home, and then got upset because it wasn't pink. That comment right there got her hung up on. What a rude individual who is too dumb to see that the website is wrong. And I'm going to prove it now.

This is what I ordered. The Little Missmatched Doll Casual Comfort clothing pack. Click picture to see it bigger.

Little Missmatched Doll Fashion Pack Casual Comfort

This is what I keep getting instead. The Little Missmatched Doll Fashion Forward clothing pack. Click picture to make it bigger.

Little Missmatched Doll Fashion Pack - Fashion Forward

I wanted to show the website page so you can see I am not lying. Different item numbers and names and they do not look anything alike. So to that lovely lady on the phone. it's not about picking up an item that clearly says it's blue then being disappointed when I get because it isn't pink. I'm not that kind of person nor am I that stupid. By the way, thanks a lot Toys R Us for basically calling me a stupid individual. The website is wrong. Even when I got the item home and looked at the receipt, the numbers for both items were different, so how did I end up with the same one twice and then another sent to me again? So that's when I went to Ebay foolishly thinking I'd find another option. Guess what, all the ones being sold are by toy stores that I think are all under Toys R Us. Nice, right?

Oh, and when I asked the lady on the phone if she knew how I could contact the people who handle the Ebay sales, because logically if Toys R Us is going to take my money they should have a way for me to contact them right, she said she had no idea what I was talking about. What? Um, ok. That's slightly understandable, not her department, but surely she knew how to contact them right? Nope, she told me I'd have to call Ebay and ask about the seller there. Ask about the seller? The seller is Toys R Us. But no amount of me explaining that to her got me any closer to an answer. I asked if orders for the website and Ebay were handled by the same people or the same warehouse, just hoping to see if I should expect the same outfit again or maybe hopefully might have a chance to get the one I wanted. Nope, she just kept saying I need to call Ebay and find out about the seller that way. Ok, I gave up on that then. She got me so “calmly” worked up the acid in my stomach was in my throat cutting off my air some, that is never good because it takes a while to settle down. I was polite to her, I didn't raise my voice, and all I wanted was to get the outfit I ordered. That's all I wanted Toys R Us! But I guess that's to much to ask for these days.

Now after reading about the site some I learned this is not uncommon. They do this a lot. People have ordered items and been sent other items instead. It's funny, when I opened the first order I said to myself, I hope they didn't mess up my order, and right when I said that I saw the duplicate items. This has been a rather upsetting situation, and to be called stupid by a Toys R Us employee when I was clearly in the right was rather upsetting as well. I know Toys R Us won't care about one person they have seriously wrong and insulted. They won't care that I will avoid their store as much as humanly possible. They won't care that I used to be a faithful customer but will take my business elsewhere. But I had to let my thoughts be known. Perhaps hate is a strong word. I'll change it to seriously dislike. Yes, I seriously dislike Toys R Us, and that woman who basically called me stupid on the phone. Perhaps she was having a bad day, and if so I am sorry she was having a bad day, but she works in a position where she needs to keep her cool and not tiptoe around straight out calling people stupid. I know Toys R Us will never see this, but just in case they do, these practices you do are low, dirty, and cheap. You need to have someone check your website because you have items listed wrong. I bet you have boxes full of that Casual Comfort outfit because no one can properly buy the thing. And it seems neither will I.

You want to know the whole sad part of this? I'm not bothered by the repeat outfits, I could do something with them or return them to the store. I'm only slightly bothered by the lady on the phone because I got to hang up on her and talk about her stupidity here. What bothers me is I was done wrong by a company I trusted, and in the end, I just really wanted that outfit. Maybe some day I will get lucky and find it, maybe not. I know the outfit I get from Ebay will be the same Fashion Forward one and I don't know if I will even bother opening it. Maybe I will throw in the closet and come across it in a couple of years, open it, and laugh about the whole silly situation. But for now I am just defeated. I had to battle with Brady Games over invalid codes and that took a week of constantly being on them about it, and now this whole situation just has me exhausted. Oh, I did get my codes from Brady, so that was a good turn out.

I wish this Toys R Us thing would turn out good as well, but I just know it won't. I just don't know what else to do about it. I've called, emailed, sent messages through Ebay, I've done it all. Right now it's gotten to the principle of the matter. They did me wrong, they need to fix it. They won't, and that's what burns me. I'll get over it eventually, but for now I sulk and look at the back of the Fashion Forward clothing box at the little drawing of the Casual Comfort outfit and sigh. You know, if Toys R Us would fix this problem and apologize to me I would take back what I said about them. At first I was upset at Brady Games, but they finally followed through. It took them a while to get it right but they finally did. Can I still be hopeful that Toys R Us will do the same? Fingers crossed.

*sigh* But anyway...please, someone tell me about your day. Tell me you had something awesome happen. Got a new doll? A new puppy? Finally beat that game you've been playing? Tell me it all in the comments. I want to feel happy for someone. Talk to you lovelies later.

Michelle

PS – I will respond to comments sometime this week and finish updating the blog. I have just been busy with my articles that I get writing overkill. So expect some updates very soon. Love you guys. Bye for now.

Blythe Dresses On Etsy

Image From Free Digital Photos

So one of the things I want to start doing this year is promoting other doll peeps who I find interesting. I kind of feel like I am walking into mucky waters with this one because while I want to give notice to those people who I find interesting, I don't want to insult others by not mentioning them first, third, or even at all. So I will just put down the “cone of safety” on each of these posts. LOL! These posts are in no way to insult anyone, they are made to encourage purchasing of awesome dollie items I find and possibly help a handmade artist in the meanwhile. :-) And now that the cone of safety is on * insert cone of safety sliding sound here * let the awesomeness commence.

Thriving To Thrift

So it's been a longggggg time since I've gone to a thrift store. When I first got back into the hobby I at least made it to a thrift store once a month. Now I haven't been to one in about two years or so. * sad face * If I wasn't feeling well then there was something going on with family and there was never a good time go. However, this year I am actively taking steps to take my life back and with that I want to get back all the things I used to do, one big thing being thrifting. :-)

At first when I went to thrift stores it was to purchase dolls. I wanted dolls to practice customizing with, and then when I saw posers there I started to go to collect them. I could also get a few new outfits from thrifting for dolls. After a while I found a small fabric section at one store and then started getting items for their fabric. I stuck to mostly Halloween costumes, since I didn't want to ruin actual clothing. But I have seen dropped that feeling, and now I am ready to go hunt down some clothing for doll clothes.

See I figure that the fabric you can find in clothing is a bit more unique and you can also find period fabrics that you just can't find on regular store shelves. I am looking for certain patterns and fabrics for the clothes I want to sew. Now logically I can get a lot more fabric if I go to a fabric store and buy a yard, but those fabrics won't be as unique. Don't get me wrong, I will use fabric store fabric, but I want to see if I can come up with a unique combination of fabric store and thrift store fabrics. I hope to hit a thrift store in the coming weeks. I'm super excited for my “return to thrifting”. I hope I come across actual vintage fabric, but that's hard to find here, which is why vintage clothing is the next best thing. Something tells me an 80s prom dress is in my future. Which is super funny since I never went to prom, but I'll at least have a prom dress. :-)

Another thing about using fabric from clothing is that the clothes I make will be more limited. I want to have some pieces that can be replicated, but I want a good majority of the stuff I create to be more ooak pieces to make them a little more special. Can't wait to get started. Sadly, I'll have to start slow in the beginning because I have a ton of fabric, fabric store and old clothing fabric, that I need to start using up first. I have some vintage clothes I am able to use for fabric scraps, so that's a good start. One day I will have to pile up all my fabric and take a picture of it to show you guys. I have a big stash, not big by some people's means, but big for me. I remember seeing the fabric stash of a popular doll person who does photostories and sews clothes for all her dolls, and I was impressed. Filled closets, filled bookcases, and there was fabric in another room she didn't take a picture of. Was I jealous? Heck yeah! I hope to be able to have a similar stash some day. Another popular doll person who just sells dolls clothes she makes and makes a living at it, has another impressive fabric stash I admire. She has strictly store bought fabrics and they are all nicely piled in color coordinated stacks. It's like eye candy looking at them. I drool now just thinking about it. ;-)

I can't wait to get back to sewing again. It was relaxing and I was in “the zone”. I'd work for hours on one item just to get it right. I hope to speed up with my sewing so I can produce more in a day, but either way I know it will be relaxing to do and possibly help me deal with some stuff going on in life right now. Oh, speaking of sewing, I will be showing some pictures of items I have made already. I believe they are Blythe dresses I made back in 2010 around Thanksgiving-Christmas time. Seeing them years later, I see how they weren't bad for a first serious attempt. I'm eager to make them again, even though I hate sewing them up because they can be tricky to sew with the lining, but you need lining with Blythe dresses because they arms and legs will sap up dye like it is nobody's business. I'll try to get some pictures of those items this weekend. I wasn't proud of them when I first made them, I thought they were crap, but now looking at them with fresh eyes I see that they weren't that bad. Wish I would have stuck with sewing, who knows where I'd be by now. :-) Oh well, I'll get it all back, one day at a time. Until then, I'll start planning out the new fashions I want to sew. Now if I could only get my hands on that prom dress. ;-)

Deciding which thrift store to hit first,
Michelle

Image By Mod As Hell From Flickr

Fashion Doll Fashion

So I believe my love of Barbie has pretty much all but disappeared. I am very much more into dolls that have more posing ability. Now I just look to Barbie for her clothing and accessories, take a look at her wardrobe and you'll see why, and sometimes her playsets. But even as my skills of crafting in general increase, and since MyFroggyStuff came into my life and taught me to think outside of the doll box, Barbie is even losing me when it comes to clothing and props. But one area she still captures me in is her fashion. Wait, I should clarify. I didn't mean Barbie's actual fashions. I mean fashions based off of Barbie.

When it comes to clothes, especially t-shirts, I am very particular about them. I am not a big fan of big cartoon characters slapped across them. I find them very childish, for me, if you love this type of clothing go on with your bad self. I've just always wore that type t-shirt when I was younger, and now I can't stand it. The only way I'd wear one now is if it had a more high fashion or vintage look to it. When I saw the recent t-shirt designs released by Mattel, I was hooked. I loved how vintage and fashionable they looked. Take a look at my selections below. Click on any picture to be taken to the item's sale page if you want to see more pictures, sizing, etc.

These next three shirts made me think of vintage Barbie and vintage t-shirts. Making use of the old Barbie font as well as other dated font from decades past, these shirts are fun and eye-catching.

My favorite out of the three is the gray one with AA Barbie on it. Love it to bits. I would would need two of them because I would wear the hell out of them. LOL! Now the next two shirts below are based off the tokidoki line. They make me think of the vintage prints that were very basic black outlines with bright colors to fill them in. Not sure if I am making sense with what I am saying. I believe you saw this kind of art more around the 80s. It was very “new age” for the time. Very sharp lines. The first one especially makes me think of that.

I love them both, and would have a hard time deciding between the two. If I had to pick just one I'd take the black shirt. I love the pink hair, the bright gold stars...even though I am not a fan of gold I feel it works, and the black t-shirt as a background. It just all works perfectly. Now the next two shirts are interesting because they make use of more of a silhouette look. I know there is full shape and design to them both, but they are still lacking in a full form, so it says more silhouette to me.

I really like the pink shirt with the black print of Barbie on it. It makes me think of Audrey Hepburn, and if you know me, you know I simply adore Audrey Hepburn. So that was very appealing to me. I like the other one too because of the kind of “peek-a-boo” look the silhouette is giving against the word “glamour”. Very fun and almost sexy even. Now the last two shirts are kind of a modern vintage to me. They have vintage looking designs on them, but in more of a modern twist. However, these edge on the big characters slapped across a shirt, and they don't look vintage enough for the vintage picks, so they are my bottom picks.

I really love both of these shirts, but my favorite out of the two has to be the Francie shirt. I love Francie due to her Mod fashions and so I am more pulled towards her. This design is a bit big and I may have issues wearing it outside, but around the home I would proudly wear it. The other design, also a bit big, is fun and cute with the saying “Future Mrs. Ken” on it. Very fun fashions, and all looks I'd love to wear.

Now, the fashions aren't the only thing I love seeing Barbie on. I also love seeing her fashions on accessories. Once again, it can't be this big cartoony feel or I won't be interested. It has to be subtle, having a vintage look wouldn't hurt, and it needs to feel more like a fashion piece. These few pieces, I feel, fit the bill perfectly for me.

Now this ring is sadly sold out. I loved everything about it. It's vintage Barbie in a fun ring form. I would have loved to have owned one for sure. So those of you who got one, cherish it and love it, for there are those of us who must cherish from afar. LOL! I tend not to be one for big huge rings, but this one is just so fun I couldn't help but love it. Maybe I'll get lucky and come across it someday some way. Fingers crossed tight. ;-) 

Now this next item I have adored for a while. It's almost like those old books that have pictures of a ton of stuff and you look through them to see what you can spy in them. There is just so many fun things in the pictures on this bag, that is takes you a few minutes to pause and take it all in.

 

Both sides have wardrobe pictures on them, and they are different on each side. So you have plenty to look at. I believe the fashions are a mix of vintage and modern fashions Barbie has worn over the years. Very fun. I'd be afraid to walk out with this bag because I wouldn't want to get it dirty, but this is one of those bags that simply must be seen. The next fashion pick is this simple but fun headband.

I love how it spells out doll, and I would love to have it except for two problems. One, it's on top of your head, so only you and really tall people will know it's there. Or if you are sitting down and someone walks by they can see it too. The second issue I have is I have very dark hair, so it will be hard to tell that the headband spells out anything, and it would he hard to tell what it spells out unless you stop and really look. Fashion is made to be seen, and if you can't show it off, there's really no point to wear it. At least that's my thoughts on it. Now if you have lighter hair, medium brown to blonde, I'd say go for it. It will be visible in your hair easily, and if you are a short person with lighter hair even better. LOL! It's discounted from $15 to $5, so this is a time to snatch one or two up. I love the pink “Barbie” inside of the band, it's a lovely and unique fashion piece, I just don't think it would stand out enough for me to feel the need to own one. Yes, I'd know it was there, but the whole reason of wanting to own it is so that other people would know it was there too. Just my thoughts. What do you think about the headband? Post your comments below.

 

This next piece is a funky little tote. As I've mentioned, I don't like gold much, but I love the mix of pink in the gold “Barbie” font on top of the white purse background. It kind of calms down the gold for me and makes this wearable. I love how the font is spelled with Barbie's iconic ponytail. Very fun. This tote isn't overly big, so it's a subtle piece, which is perfect it you just want a little pop to your outfit.

This next bag is just interesting. It's a seatbelt bag, made exactly from what the name says, a seatbelt. This durable bag is not only functional it's fashionable to. I have always loved the color combination of white, black, and pink, and this purse does that perfectly. Then to top off this cool bag, you get Barbie herself on it. I think this bag would have been boring without her on it, and this is coming from a girl who's not a big fan of logos or brands on items. But I think her image really finishes the bag off nicely. Not sure if I would actually own this bag myself, but I love the look of it, and I think it's a really nice bag. I just don't know if I'd have the guts to walk around with Barbie on my bag. ETA: This tote is sadly no longer available from Mattel. I actually found a whole listing of things no longer available from Mattel anymore, and these items were very interesting. I encourage you to go snooping around the Barbie Collector shop and see what Mattel has sold in the past, there are some interesting and pretty things. Now on to my last pick. It's not a fashion item really, but it does help to keep one fashionable. It's a fun vanity brush and mirror set.

I love this set. I love the vintage images on the back of the brush and mirror. Also they look like a good size, not purse-size but just the right size to fit easily into your hand. This is another item I wouldn't own directly simply because it would mostly be a collector's piece for me and I just don't collect those kinds of items, but a collector who does will love the vintage look. They will look fancy on anyone's vanity or even in a curio. I just love vintage Barbie art, it takes me back to being a little girl, and that's why this set appealed to me so much.

So yeah, I'm not really into Barbie any more, just because my interests have changed, but she will always be my childhood favorite, and I have fond memories of playing with Barbie, so when I find an item that can bring up those memories I tend to like them, even if Barbie is all over it. Who knows, maybe if I have a little kid one day they will reignite my love of Barbie, by then who knows how much she'll have transformed. But for now, I'll just pop into her aisle at the store every now and again to see what she's up to, I'll covet her fun fashion items, and I'll remember the fun times we had together when I was a child. :-) Oh, and just because I think they are neat, be sure to pick up your Barbie desktop calendar for January. Just click on the picture to be taken to the download page.

And on that note, I am off you lovely peeps. I have an article due, and I've been lazy about doing it. I tend to get lazy with Squidoo quests. I prefer to write my own articles, and those tend to whip up really quick. I am thinking of not doing the quests any more. Giving myself time to think about it because it's because of the quests I almost have 100 articles written in just a few months. So we will see. Ok, talk to you lovelies later. Bye for now.

Wishing she could be a little girl again just for one day,
Michelle

Way To Waste A Day

So I of course want to have more planned/scheduled days so I don't waste my days doing nothing. Today, however, I knew would be a wasted day. For those of you who don't know, on occasion I will play a game called Guild Wars 2. My sister is addicted to the game, but I am more of a casual player. There was a Winter event going on and I thought it ended on the 13th, when it actually ended on the 3rd. Yikes! There were things I wanted to do before it ended. So I spent all evening working on it, then in the end I didn't do what I wanted to do and ended up wasted a lot of the items I was grinding for. Ugh! Oh well, I got something I thought I had to choose between and missed out on something I wouldn't have really used that much anyway. So I guess it wasn't a totally wasted evening.

But I didn't get anything done like cleaning or sorting or anything. I guess that's how things go sometimes. Oh, but I did have my first fully gluten-free day today. I'm still a little winded at times, but no stomach pain. No feeling horrible no sooner I started eating or afterwards. *whimper* Do I really have issues with gluten??? While I was glad I didn't feel horrible, I felt horrible because I didn't feel horrible. Need to reread that line again? Go ahead, I'll wait.

Got it now? Cool. So basically it hit me that I am facing, yet again, another permanent change in my life. First it was the thyroid pills, and now going gluten-free? I mean I wanted to change my lifestyle, but this is still a bit hard to swallow. I'm also ticked I didn't stick with it when I started last time. But I've grown some and realize this time that going gluten-free doesn't have to be a horrible experience. It can't be, it's for life. So yeah, time to pull out and dust off all those gluten-free living books. I believe I have 5 of them. That should be enough to get me started.

What else did I do today? Oh yeah, I just found the coolest shop. Since it's an Etsy shop, I count it as crafty and so I shall share it here.

Size XL Fern and Baby's Breath Resin Bangle. Red and Green Pressed Flower Bracelet. Plus Size Bracelet with Real Flowers

I am trying to clean out my email again, and one of my more recent emails was from Etsy. The first image that caught my eye was this amazing and pretty bracelet from SpottedDogAsheville. This stunning clear resin bracelet is made by Sumner Smith, and crafty gal from Asheville, NC. I love finding crafty people in NC, and I can't wait to buy from her shop one day when I have the funds to do so. She makes all kinds of jewelry. Bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and rings that can be bought as is or made to order. I had a real hard time picking an image to post in the blog, so I decided for the one that brought me to her awesome shop. She is also on Facebook. Check her out, if anything, to see her amazing pieces.

And that's about all I did today. Nothing exciting, and sadly nothing doll related. But perhaps I will get to tackle something doll related tomorrow. We'll just have to wait and see. And on that note I am calling it a night. I think I may catch up on a Korean drama some and then head to bed. I hope you are all doing well and having a great start to your year. I will talk to you lovelies soon. Bye for now. :-)

Feeling sleepy,
Michelle

Watch Image From Free Digital Photos

Bracelet Image From SpottedDogAsheville (It is linked to it's sale page.)

Junky Spot Black Xmas Sale

Hey guys, just thought I'd mention this for those who might not have heard. Junky Spot is having a "Black Xmas" sale this weekend. Starting today, on special sale pages on the website, you can get some nice deals on some dolls you my have been coveting. Right now on sale are various Hujoo dolls. If I had the funds, I would be so broke right now. LOL!

There will be more sales tomorrow and Saturday. I believe they will be different items because he said they couldn't combine shipping for multiple orders. I'm assuming people would buy all they wanted in their first order and would only buy more if there are new items for sale. So be sure to check back the rest of this weekend. He may put Obitsu dolls up for sale, and you 1/6th peeps can snag some dolls for a little bit cheaper. So fingers crossed on that.

Ok, just wanted to pop back on to mention that. I will talk to you lovelies later. Bye for now.

Still feeling sleepy after eating turkey,
Michelle

Image From The Junky Spot Website

Hey guys!!!

Hey guys, how are you all doing? Me? Doing a lot better than a few weeks ago. I have so much to catch up on in the doll hobby, I’ve missed you guys so much, and I have a few things to share with you all. News about my things keeping me from blogging, family news updates, and a recent shopping spree that I really shouldn’t have done but future events needing past items caused it to happen. Huh? What? Yeah, I know, super cryptic, but all will be revealed soon. I’m going to do a video this weekend for you guys on the shopping spree along with some posts about what’s been going on. Like I said, I miss you guys and I have so many blogs to catch up on. I am working on getting all your links into a blog RSS reader so I can be updated through that. I know, I’m the last one to do it, but I’m a natural late bloomer.   Ok, gotta go, I have a short story to work on and get done by tomorrow at midnight, more on that later.  Bye for now guys, I hope all of you are doing well.  Big  dollie hugs and kisses from me. Take care.

Glad to be back,

Chelle

For Sale: Rare Bild Lilli

So I have been researching some Ebay info for my boyfriend and in doing that research I found a website that shows the top 25 auctions on Ebay and one of the auctions I came across was for Bild Lilli doll.

For those of you who don’t know who Bild Lilli is, she’s basically the momma to Barbie.  If you will, she’s kind of like the original Barbie and original fashion doll.  She started off as a cartoon character from 1950-1964.  In 1953 she was made into a doll, and 130,000 of her was sold until Mattel bought the rights to her, which is when all production of her stopped.  She was created for the adults who enjoyed reading her comics. She was a sort of sex symbol of the time. It’s kind of interesting to think of what might have happened with Lilli if Ruth Handler hadn’t found her on her trip to Europe.  Would we all be in walking down the “Lilli” aisle at the stores now?  Makes you think.

Well this doll in particular seems to be in mint shape. She is an original large (12 inch) gal with her original very hard to find dress…the auction’s words not mine. I love her dress, it has a vintage feel to it, ok so technically it is vintage, but what I mean is a “period” feel to it.  Lilli wore outfits from the time she was created.  Here’s what her Wiki has to say about her wardrobe:

Lilli came as a dressed doll--additional fashions were not sold separately. Her fashions mirror the lifestyle of the 1950s: She had outfits for parties, the beach and tennis, as well as cotton dresses, pajamas and poplin suits. In her last years, her wardrobe consisted mainly of "Dirndl" dresses. Lilli's dresses always have patent fasteners marked "PRYM". PRYM is the leading German button manufacturer; most German dollmakers used, and still use, its products.

Lilli was basically the first fashion doll.  What interested me most about her wardrobe is in the end she wore mostly dirndls.  In my photostory comic I am going to start working on later on this year one of the characters is a service robot that basically wears a dress and apron.  I plan to have her wear dirndls as well.  If I can’t wear one at least she can. LOL!

Even though Lilli was made for an adult audience, she became popular with children.  So much so that German toy companies began to make dollhouses, furniture, etc. in Lilli’s size, which I believe was the smaller version of Lilli which was around 7 inches.  Don’t quote me on that I’m not 100% sure which size items were made for, it could have been both.

I would love to have an original Bild Lilli, but I’m not crazy about having an original Barbie.  Is that weird?  I guess because Lilli is the “original” Barbie as well as she’s from Germany which is where part of my family is from. Also I would love to have a bit of fashion doll history in my hands.  Lilli was, I believe, the first doll with a patent on it, she had three on her.  Also her mechanics is very interesting as well.  Her hair alone interests me.  Here hair was either glued or rooted into a scalp that was screwed into a hidden screw in her body. She was strung together with rubber bands inside.  My mom had old dolls from the times that were held together with rubber bands as well.  So it makes me wonder if this doll for auction had it’s elastic replaced because we all know her elastic would not have lasted this long.  If it has, it won’t be for to much longer.  I wonder if she was kept in a climate controlled place if it would have keep the rubber band pliable?  Yes, I wonder these things. Does that make me weird? Please don’t answer.

Well, as much as I’d love a Lilli of my own, I’ll have to just enjoy seeing pictures of her for now.  Her auction is already at $2,850 dollars and it still has a little over 2 days to go.  So umm yeah, so not going to have this beauty. LOL! Oh well, good luck to the lucky to-be winner.  I hope she goes to a good home where she will be cherished. 

So yeah, just had to share that find with all you lovely peeps.  Be sure to check out the auction, no I don’t know the auction host I just found it interesting and wanted to share.  Talk to you all later.  Be good until then.  Bye for now. 

Drooling over rare dolls,
Chelle

A quick post.

Hey guys, I just wanted to pop on real quick to share a few things with you I’ve been meaning to talk about.

So last week I was shopping with my mom and we popped into Tuesday morning that was still pretty bare from Black Friday a week before.  So while searching through the toy section I didn’t see much of interested in the girl’s side.  But when I turned around just to glance at the boy’s side I found something of interest.

Monster High Day At The Maul Draculaura.  I debated for a while on getting her.  I have wanted DLaura since the dolls debuted.  I wanted her before I wanted Frankie, but just never got her.  But there she was and at $9.99 she was a steal.  The thing that sold me on her was if I didn’t want her I knew I could sell her easily and get my money back.  That is until I got home and my sister’s keen eye caught something I hadn’t.  I must be slacking after not doll shopping for a while.  Poor DLaura has a big scratch in her eye makeup on her left eye (our right).  If that didn’t make me sad, what I found later did.  My Tuesday Morning is really dark in the toy section and only had bright light by the door.  So it wasn’t until I got her in brighter light that I noticed what I thought was off on her really was off.  The outline of her facial heart wasn’t finished on one side, and her fangs were painted on crooked. 

Oh sure, I know I could still sell her as is, but it just doesn’t seem right.  I thought of taking her back, but my sister said I should just customize her.  I have been toying with the idea of customizing Frankie, so customizing DLaura wasn’t out of the question.  So I have decided to keep her and customize her.  I found a cool tutorial where someone died their DLaura with RIT dye.  So there are many possibilities of changing my girls into someone new.  But now I have an issue.  Now that I have two girls, I only have one boy.  I feel off centered now.  No, I am not going to collect these dolls because they would truly just be a collection for me and not of much use elsewise for me, so I just want to get one more boy to balance things out.  I want Holt Hyde since I have Jackson already.  I’ve wanted Holt for a while now too, so I will just get him and that will be it for Monster High for me…although…those create a monster sets look pretty cool.  *sigh*

After Tuesday Morning my mom and I headed to a local Dollar Tree, also healing from the affects of Black Friday.  I went for nail polish, L. A. Colors if anyone is interested, but of course had to stop by the doll section.  Found one more set of the dress set that had the dress that would only fit a Monster High doll.

I decided to get one to see if that was a fluke and also so I’d have extra of the strawberry dress because I really feel that stuff is going to unravel like crazy no sooner I pull out the seams.  It was the only dress set left so I figured it was meant to be.  Oh and yes, that dress was a fluke.

While I was in the toy section I noticed these doll “heads” that I guess are meant to be hair styling doll heads.  Wish I would have gotten a picture.  When I am there this week I will get one for sure.  But these heads looked very much like Barbie heads.  I mean literally if you took away where we were, took away the packaging, you’d swear you’d seen those heads before.  I’m really surprised Mattel hasn’t gone after these people since they are so trigger happy when it comes to suing people that are trying to get in on their turf.  And there was no mistaking where these molds came from.  I know a smiling face Barbie when I see one, and these dolls had that nasty face…sorry to those who like that mold.

And last but not least, I owed you all a picture of my sister’s Bei.  Here she is in a Liv doll cotton candy wig and a dress that came with the dress set the wig came in.  It was sold at Target if you are interested.

She is so super cute and I simply must have one.  I’d love to get a tan girl one day soon.  Until then I can play with my sister’s Bei that I believe has been renamed Karina.  I’ll update you on that later as well.  Karina will be one of the dolls receiving a new wardrobe from me.  She’s got a super thick body and big hands and feet so she needs things to be altered a bit for her.  I already have some great ideas in mind.

She doesn’t really have a story or personality yet, but what I have learned about her is she likes to wear cute items…as long as they aren’t pink.  Ughhh!  How can you have cute without pink?!?  Those of you cute lovers out there who detest pink, do not attack me, I was kiddingggg.  Yes, I have my work cut out for me on this.  But like I said, I already have some ideas.  Some of course had to be killed off because I was thinking of using dark fabrics and then remembered how resin likes to absorb dye much like Blythe dolls.  So if it’s not lined it could make for a problem.  I am refusing to be the reason my sister’s doll is ruined. If she ever does get ruined I promise it won’t be because of me.  So yes, like I said before, I have my work cut out for me.

And that’s about it for this post.  Still kind of busy as of now.  I am getting things done but I still have a ton more to get done.  I hope to be back to blogging more before the end of the month, but don’t any of you dare hold me to that.    Just wanted to share my finds and finally show you Bei.  Sorry for the lack of good quality pictures.  I snapped these on my cell phone real quick in a darkish room at night.  LOL!  I’ll try to get some better pictures of Bei as my project continues with her.  As for DLaura, it’ll take some time before I can get to her, but her and I do have a craft date for sure.  And on that note I will talk to you lovelies later.  Be good until next we meet.  Bye for now. 

Loves ya ,
Mouse

The Past Few Days

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Not that I’m super missed around the blogosphere, nope not a beg for attention there, I still thought I’d pop on real quick and tell you how my November went and how I believe it has changed some things for me.

So this month was Nanowrimo, and I had planned to be a rebel and write out the script for my doll photostories so I could start “filming” them in December and start uploading them in January.  Yeah, it didn’t work out that way at all.  It’s currently the last day of Nanowrimo with less than two hours to go and I have just under 8000 words typed up.  I needed 50000 words to win.  Yeah, not winning this year.  First time in several years I won’t be winning, and I’m ok with that.  Every year I felt I had to do Nanowrimo because I “wasn’t a serious aspiring author” if I didn’t do it.  So every year I did it.  Well this year I couldn’t think of a story I wanted to rush through for the month.  I’ve decided to really take my time and work through a plot before writing because I realized I was wasting my time by churning out crap because I wanted to rush through a story to make my 50k.  So I chose my script instead.  Well I started work on it on day one, then didn’t touch it until day 18.  I still could have won, but me dreading over something coming up at the end of the month kept me from being enthusiastic about it, so time dragged on and no typing was done.  Then came the dreaded day.

On the 28th I had jury duty.  For those of you who don’t know, jury duty is when the state summons you to court to overhear cases and decide if the person is innocent or guilty.  In other words, the person charged needs to be judged by a group of their peers, and those summoned to jury duty are those peers.  There were two cases, both pretty awful crimes.  Both put stress on me because both kind of brought up bad things in my life.  I thankfully got out of both of them, but it was over two days worth of hours sitting at the courthouse, the first day I was there from before 8:30 until after 5 o’clock.  The second day I thankfully got out around noonish-1 o’clock.  But after all was said and done I honestly came away from the situation a different person.  These past two days have literally worn me out and stressed me to the point of illness to hear bits and pieces of what these two individuals did and then to hear the horrific stories of other people defending themselves on why it would be best they didn’t serve on the jury.  I don’t believe I have to tell you that I’m so glad the whole thing is over…for two years at least.  Come November 30th 2013 I could be back up at the court house, and I’m really hoping it’s a simple robbery case of they broke in, left prints, are guilty as sin.  But I won’t worry about that for now.  Let’s get past December 21, 2012 first and then we’ll revisit this topic again. 

So now that that is all over I feel relaxed again and feel focused.  But now my script is unfinished and the whole month is gone.  Well I’ve decided I still want to “film” this upcoming month, so I am doing a super Nanowrimo by writing the script up in one to two days starting at midnight.  I know it can be done and I know I can do it.  I’ve whipped up 8-10 page essays in less time than that.    Children out there, do as I say and not as I do…get your essay’s done super early and give yourself plenty of time to work on it and make it your best work.  You’ll be so glad you did.    Ok, PSA over.  But yeah, I really want to focus on this script and get the story done and the pictures done and get it all uploaded so I can move on from this script.  It’s been a script in my head for YEARSSSS and well, I’m kind of over it.  But I’ve worked so hard on it, and I’ve collected so much stuff for this story alone I just can’t say “oh forget about it” and move on.  No, I have to do something with it.  So I am.  And once I am done with it I can finally move on to the story I really want to do, but refuse to think about too much because of fear I might abandon the one I am working on now.  For now I am just collecting props for that story and speaking of which, I got some today.

My most prized purchase of the day was through the Wednesday only sale at Toys R Us.  Get this, I learned about it from a TRU sales flier left on a seat at my mom’s heart monitor appointment.  What luck was that?  Now a newspaper in the place, but I found that ad, and no I wasn’t ashamed to pick up a TRU flier and look through it in a waiting room filled with people older than me looking at me.  LOL!  So the deal I was interested in was the buy one Liv doll at regular price, get the second one half off, spend 15 dollars in Liv items, get an accessory pack for free.  I’ve needed two Jake dolls since they’ve come out, but after missing the awesome half off sale on them through TRU when they came out, I just couldn’t plunk down full price for two of them.  I just felt if I waited another deal would come along, and it did.    This deal I could “Liv” with.  Hahaha, get it, because live and Liv sound the…umm yeah…so moving on.  So I got to TRU early and went straight to the doll section to the Liv doll area.  I was on a mission, to find two Jake dolls.  I knew I had to get there early because Jake’s are like rare gems around here.

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Boy was I surprised when I got the shelf and found a Jake right up front.  Mine!  But I wanted one more.  So I searched through the various female dolls and didn’t find a Jake.  I was feeling bummed and started looking at the girl dolls wondering how I could use them in my future story so I could still at least get the deal.  I kept digging and digging to find the right girl for me to take home when in the very back of the shelf I found him, a second Jake doll.  I know I don’t have to tell you this but, MINE!  So I had my two boys and now I needed an accessory pack.  Ladies and gents, do your research online before you head to the store.  It will help those of you like me who are indecisive quickly get what you want.  I found several packs online and had them polled down to two.  I decided I could easily pick between two packs, so I went on the hunt.  I only found one of the two, and I saw that it wasn’t what I expected, it was better.  I found another set I wasn’t sold on, and almost got it because at first it was the only one I saw, but I walked down further and found the other packs.  But the one I had in my hand had slippers, and shoes for these dolls are hard to come by, so I almost was sold on the set I didn’t really want due to slippers, but then I saw the pack I originally chose and saw how perfect it was for one of my main characters in my new story that I had to take it home with me instead.

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It’s so perfect for Lucy, my shy nerdy girl.  The phone is similar to mine expect mine is blue, the computer has a cool design on the other side, the bag really opens and you can put the computer in, there’s a mp3 player that they can really wear, and some snackage.  What’s not to love?  I almost said no on this set because the bag looked so cool but I hate sets with bags that don’t open.  When I was a kid I would have taken it without a second thought, but as an adult you can’t do much in a story with a “fake” bag.  And I want to move more towards real fabric bags instead of plastic, but this one I took a chance on because it looks so nice and it works.  So yeah I was happy with my purchase.  There’s nothing I don’t like about it.  Well…I don’t like that the strawberries are white on the sundae, but a quick swipe of the paintbrush will fix that.    So yeah, can’t wait to start using these in my new photostory after I finish the current one. 

The rest of the day was random shopping for things, a lot of nail polish for some reason. But one thing I did get was another one of the strawberry dress sets from the last few posts.  Remember the pink dress didn’t fit?  Well I got the second set to see if the pink dress in it would fit and decided if it didn’t I’d have more of the strawberry “fabric” to work with.  Something tells me it’s going to fray super bad so having a little more to work with will be nice.  And well, that’s about it for the past few days.  A lot of ups and downs, mostly downs, but I survived, I learned a few things about myself, and I’m ready to finally tackle things now that I realize that I won’t crumble and fall on the spot due to some health issue.  That’s the one pro from spending all day at jury duty without eating or drinking anything from stress.  I do not advise that people.  I almost fainted while descending four flights of stairs.  Yeah.

So, what’s next for me?  A lot.  This December is going to be a busy month, but I love being busy.  I love getting up early now and starting the day with a fresh mind and fresh start.  Speaking of which, I need to hurry this up and get my butt to bed.  Getting up around 5:3-6 so I can head out tomorrow to get some conditioner for my hair in the morning then get back here and get started on Christmas presents.  Busy, busy, busy.

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So one of the first things I need to get done is to get my desk finally.  I believe I mentioned it here that I have been on the hunt for a second desk ever since I gave up my crafting table.  I just wanted a small one for my room so I can craft in my room and on a clean surface.  My other desk I do everything on from painting to gluing then I sew on it.  So I kind of want a place to do my fabric crafts without having to check like crazy for paint or glue.  I had found two IKEA table/desk things I liked the price of, but the shipping went up and I just didn’t feel the same about them any more.  Then my mom found this desk on the Walmart website and after seeing that the curvy side is not really on the final product I was sold.  But I’ve yet to get my desk.  I’m hoping for tomorrow to get it so I can start working on Christmas presents.  I have some ideas for them, but nothing can be put down in stone until I get a proper work place.  So hopefully I will make this one mine tomorrow.  Hopefully.

So desk hunting, present making, catching upping in various things, that leaves me little time to be lazy this upcoming month.  Yay for that!    So much to do, so little time, and I’m cool with that.  I’m seeing now that spending each moment the best you can is what matters most.  Yes all of this was learned from the tortures of jury duty.  I wish I could get into more about what happened, but then it means revealing things about me that just aren’t on topic of this blog and I promise you, sharing personal stuff with a room full of strangers is embarrassing enough, I don’t think I should force myself through it again with my doll peeps.  Just know that I am seeing life through different colored lenses now and those pretty rose colored ones are in the trash forever.

And well, I believe that’s it for this post.  I’ll try to pop in sporadically this month, but don’t be surprised if Christmas Eve is the first you hear from me.  I’m telling you, busy month ahead, but that’s a good thing.  And I hope to be able to come back here with lots to show and tell.  Until then my dear lads and lassies, be good and remember your rabbits in the morning.      Bye for now.

Loves ya ,
Mouse